I echo Patrick's advice about the oil and the parafilm gunk - been there! We've shipper Greiner 1536 microbatch plates from the National Crystallization Center in Buffalo across the US, and across from Buffalo to Diamond with remarkable success. There were few if any issues.
Check out: The use of haptic interfaces and web services in crystallography: an application for a `screen to beam’ interface<https://snelllab.website/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/haptic-2016.pdf>. Bruno A, Soares A, Owen R, Snell EH. J. Appl. Cryst. (2016). 49, 2082-2090. Best, Eddie Edward Snell Ph.D. Professor and Chair, Materials Design and Innovation | University at Buffalo, SUNY Director | NSF BioXFEL Science and Technology Center | Sunset 2025 Fellow of the American Crystallographic Society – The Structural Science Society p: +1 716 881 7573 (new) | c: +1 716 989 9128 | f: +1 716 898 8660 e: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Department of Materials Design and Innovation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and College of Arts and Sciences University at Buffalo 120 Bonner Hall, Buffalo NY 14260-9640 Department website: https://engineering.buffalo.edu/materials-design-innovation.html Laboratory Website: https://snelllab.website/ ________________________________ From: CCP4 bulletin board <[email protected]> on behalf of Patrick Shaw Stewart <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, July 9, 2026 5:38 AM To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [ccp4bb] Transit - micro batch plates You don't often get email from [email protected]. Learn why this is important<https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification> That's good advice. You can actually turn a microbatch plate upside down for a few minutes - the drops won't move. I wouldn't leave them upside down for hours because the drops may creep. The only practical problem is that if you tip Terasaki plates even a little, they may start to leak oil. (The parafilm will stop the leak, but it will turn into sticky gunk if oil gets on it.) The Vapor Batch plates Kannan mentions have a "moat" around the outside of the plate that catches oil overflows. You can also put water or other solutions into the moat - it will prevent your crystals from deteriorating for several months. Normally, microbatch plates dry out in about 2 months - roughly half the water goes through the plastic, half through the oil. Dr Gugan, if you or anyone would like a free sample of Vapor Batch plates, let me know. They are cheap, although not as cheap as Terasakis. Best wishes, Patrick On Thu, Jul 9, 2026 at 8:37 AM srikannathasan velupillai <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: We have transported microbatch plates (from Stevenage to DLS) without any disruptions: * Eliminate Air Bubbles: Top up each well completely with oil to the absolute maximum depth. This prevents air pockets and shifting the droplets during transit. * Seal the Plates Tightly: Press the lid down firmly and seal the entire perimeter with Parafilm. This keeps the lid rigid and prevents any oil leaks. * Cushion for Transit: Keep the plates perfectly flat inside a toolbox well-cushioned with plenty of tissues , and they will arrive completely intact. Also you can use Douglas Vapor Batch Plate https://www.douglas.co.uk/vb , it is safer Thanks Kannan On Thu, 9 Jul 2026 at 06:49, Dr. Gugan K <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Transporting Microbatch plates preloaded with oil We have got crystals in 72 well Terasaki plates (micro batch crystallisation) and want to transport it through train for 300kms for XRD. How do we efficiently transport the plates without disrupting the crystals in it ? Please do let us know. ######################################################################## To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/WA-JISC.exe?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1 This message was issued to members of www.jiscmail.ac.uk/CCP4BB<http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/CCP4BB>, a mailing list hosted by www.jiscmail.ac.uk<http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/>, terms & conditions are available at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/policyandsecurity/ ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/WA-JISC.exe?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1 -- [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Douglas Instruments Ltd. Douglas House, East Garston, Hungerford, Berkshire, RG17 7HD, UK Directors: Patrick Shaw Stewart, Peter Baldock, Stefan Kolek http://www.douglas.co.uk<http://www.douglas.co.uk/> Tel: 44 (0) 148-864-9090 US toll-free 1-877-225-2034 Regd. England 2177994, VAT Reg. GB 480 7371 36 ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/WA-JISC.exe?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1 ######################################################################## To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/WA-JISC.exe?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1 This message was issued to members of www.jiscmail.ac.uk/CCP4BB, a mailing list hosted by www.jiscmail.ac.uk, terms & conditions are available at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/policyandsecurity/
